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“Curtin’s Kerry Dancers steps into and out of family memory, “picking at scabs / so the blood comes through, shared” (“Family”). Through internal rhyme, similes, and his masterly control of language, Curtin balances lyric with everyday speech and “bends remembrance to love” (“Da”). Love is a heartbeat keeping time throughout the book. We, as readers, feel that bond, want to be caught in the ballad, the hornpipe, the reel—want to be pulled into the dance.”

–Susan Roney-O’Brien, educator and poet; author of Thira, Bone Circle, and several other poetry collections